Starting a Club
by laurah2215
Summary: Pairing: CJ/Danny; Series: The Concannon's:Present, Past and Future; Story # 13;Are CJ and Donna about to start a club?


Title: Starting a Club

Title: Starting a Club  
Series: The Concannon's Present, Past and Future  
Author: Laura H  
Rating-Teen to adult  
Disclaimer: Honestly? We've been through this long enough to know I'm  
not making a penny.  
Synopsis: Two pregnancies  
Notes: Itâ€™s finally the holidays and that means I get 13 days away  
from school. This isnâ€™t really much, but I wanted to tell the story.  
Donâ€™t know if there will be more before I head back to university, it  
depends on whether the muse hits me between spending time with  
friends, reading and taking care of my niece.  
Story 1-I Loved Her First  
Story2- Just Another Day in Paradise  
Story 3: My Little Girl  
Story 4:Chivalry Isn't Dead  
Story 5:He's Just Sensitive  
Story 6: The Hardest Conversation Ever  
Story 7: Letting Go  
Story 8: Getting Good at New Things  
Story 9: Where We Need to Be  
Story 10: Always Loved By Me You're Gonna Be  
Story 11: Endings and Beginnings  
Story 12: Proud of the House We Built  
Story 13:Starting a Club  
Timeline  
Nov 2006- CJ and Danny finally see what they've been missing for  
eight years.  
Jan 2007- CJ and Danny move to California together. CJ becomes  
President of the Hollis Foundation. Danny begins writing Josiah  
Bartlet's biography.  
July 2007-CJ and Danny get married at the Bartlet farm and conceive  
Abigail during their honeymoon in Ireland.  
August 2007:Story 13-â€œStarting a Clubâ€  
Sept 2007- Danny starts school to finish his doctorate  
Feb 2008- Abigail is born  
March 2009-Patrick is born.  
January 2011:" Story 5-He's Just Sensitive"  
Sept 2013:Story 2-"Just Another Day in Paradise"  
Nov 2013- February 2014: Story 3- "My Little Girl"  
June 2021: Story 4- "Chivalry Isn't Dead"  
Jan 2025:Story 6-"The Hardest Conversation Ever"  
March 2025: Story 7- "Letting Go"  
June 2029-Story 11 "Endings and Beginnings"  
May 2032: Story 1-Abigail's wedding- "I Loved Her First"  
July 2032: Story 8- "Getting Good at New Things"  
September 2032: Story 9-"Where We Need to Be"  
January 2033: Story 10-"Always Loved By Me You're Gonna Be  
July 2033: Story 12- "Proud of the House We Built"

â€œCJ, for the hundredth time, itâ€™s speckles.â€ Danny sighs and  
touches two fingers to his temple.

â€œI know, but itâ€™s just that Donnaâ€™s the first of my old  
colleagues to visit our new house.â€ CJ sweeps a hand across the  
banister to see if a layer of dust has accumulated since she cleaned  
two hours ago. After they moved in last January, they spent the first  
few months furnishing and renovating the house, settling into their  
new roles (CJ with the Hollis Foundation Executive and Danny penning  
Josiah Bartletâ€™s biography) and planning the intimate wedding ceremony  
in New Hampshire. They hadnâ€™t really been entertaining much. Dannyâ€™s  
mother and sister visited once in March to meet Dannyâ€™s new fiancÃ©e.  
CJâ€™s brothers and niece visited in April. The former President ad  
First Lady visited in late February and early June.Then in May the  
couple had flown out East to visit both sides of the family and Jed  
and Abbey.

â€œSo, the President whoâ€™s visited twice isnâ€™t considered your  
former colleague?â€ Danny raises a brow at his new wife.

â€œDonâ€™t be ridiculous, Danny. The President of the United States  
doesnâ€™t have colleagues.â€ CJ wraps both long arms around Dannyâ€™s neck  
with a smile and draws him in for a closed-mouth kiss. â€œIâ€™m sorry but  
these people probably never imagined me having a relationship and big  
house, let alone a marriage and nice home. I guess itâ€™s important to  
me that I show them that Iâ€™ve learned how to bring balance into my  
life. I have other things going for me besides my career.â€

â€œEspecially the b-a-b-yâ€¦â€ whispers Danny, wagging his brows.

â€œSsshhshh!â€ CJ brings her finger to her lips, but canâ€™t contain  
the smile. â€œWe donâ€™t know. We have to wait until Wednesday when I go  
to the OB-GYN. So much could go wrong.â€

â€œBut it wonâ€™t,â€ Danny stresses. â€œI have a feeling everything is  
fine.â€

â€œDonâ€™t talk like that,â€ CJ chides, just as the doorbell sounds.

â€œOh, CJ, itâ€™s just gorgeous. The island in the kitchen, the  
hardwood, the poolâ€¦everything. This is what I miss about living in the  
suburbs. Sometimes itâ€™s stifling living in an apartment in  
Washington.â€ Donna perches at the island.

â€œThanks. Weâ€™ve worked really hard making it our own. Maybe some  
day you and Josh will buy a house together and youâ€™ll be able to take  
pride in building it together. â€ CJ pads across the kitchen to the  
refrigerator.

â€œYeah, I donâ€™t know about that,â€ Donna responds uneasily.

â€œIs everything okay?â€ CJ inquires carefully. â€œDo you want some  
wine?â€

â€œYouâ€™re having a glass? Donna asks.

â€œNo. But Iâ€™ve got half a bottle of white and Danny doesnâ€™t drink  
it often.â€ CJ reaches into the fridge for the bottle.

â€œNo, thanks. Iâ€™ll just have water or something.â€ Donna averts her  
eyes.

â€œSeriously, whatâ€™s wrong, Donna?â€ CJ asks cautiously, pouring  
two glasses of iced tea.

â€œIâ€™mâ€¦Iâ€™m pregnant,â€ Donna whispers solemnly, fingering the glass  
of iced tea CJ had just handed her.

â€œ Oh my God!â€ CJ breathes aloud. â€œWow. What, what does Josh  
think of all this?â€

Donna sighs deeply with a grimace. â€œHe doesnâ€™t know. I just took  
the home test two days ago. Then I had to pack and get organized for  
my trip with the First Lady to California. I didnâ€™t want to tell him  
thirty minutes before I was boarding the plane.â€

â€œOh, Donna.â€ CJ reaches across the counter and lays a comforting  
hand over Donnaâ€™s slightly trembling one. â€œ Are you okay?â€

â€œYeah, Iâ€™m just so nervous about telling him. Iâ€¦I donâ€™t even know  
what I want to do. Iâ€™m so conflicted and confused. I meanâ€¦a baby.  
Itâ€™s absolutely huge.â€ Donnaâ€™s voice is low and wavering. CJ had  
sensed something was off when Donna walked in the house after leaving  
the First Lady at the hotel with her assistant, advance team and  
security detail. Donna had finished her appointments for the day, and  
tomorrow evening after the benefit they would be flying back to  
Washington. When she arrived at the Concannonâ€™s, CJ and Danny gave her  
a detailed tour before Danny headed across the street to enjoy a game  
of poker with a few other men from the neighbourhood.

â€œYeah, it is. Did, did you and Josh ever talk about whether...you  
wanted kids?â€ CJ asks her friend.

Pausing a moment to consider the question, Donna shakes her head.  
â€œNo, not really. I donâ€™t think we have the same kind of relationship  
you and Danny have. I mean, we try, but weâ€™re not as communicative or  
expressive as you and Danny. Weâ€™ve evolved to the point where Iâ€™m  
living in his apartment, but we havenâ€™t really discussed marriage or  
kids. Did, did you and Danny talk about that before you got married?â€

â€œYes,â€ CJ answers simply, taking a long sip from her glass.

â€œI just donâ€™t know how to bring it up. How did you and Danny have  
that conversation? What brought it up?â€ Donna is desperate for advice.  
She realizes all relationships are different, but if she and Josh have  
a similar situation as another couple, it would undoubtedly be CJ and  
Danny. Both couples had been waiting to be together for eight years  
and both had careers in politics.

Swallowing hard, CJ decides that she needs to be completely  
honest with her friend. â€œIt certainly wasnâ€™t under casual, controlled  
circumstances. Iâ€¦I was actually pregnant back in January.â€

â€œWhat? Oh my God! I had no idea. Whatâ€¦what happened, if you donâ€™t  
mind me asking?â€ Donnaâ€™s mouth is gaping.

Sighing internally, CJ tries to mentally distance herself from  
all the events of the past, hoping not to rehash all the terrible  
emotions she experienced. â€œ Do you remember that time in mid January  
when Josh needed to meet with me? Margaret told him I was home sick  
with the flue? Well, it wasnâ€™t the flue. I didnâ€™t know I was pregnant  
until I passed out at work one day. Abbey and the Secret Service  
rushed me to the hospital. I miscarried. The embryo formed in the  
fallopian tube, not the uterus, so my body aborted it.â€

â€œOh, God. Are you okay?â€ Donna reaches fro CJâ€™s hands.

CJ stifles back a sob and nods. â€œYeah, Iâ€™m fine now. But it  
forced Danny and I to talk about how we felt about our future. I  
hadnâ€™t thought about having children in so many years. My career was  
always the dominant focus in my life. But when Danny and I talked  
about our future, I realized that this is what I wanted more than  
anything else. I wanted to share my life with him and maybe start a  
family one day. He was so upset that I lost the baby. He was thrilled  
about the idea of having a baby. And I found myself really  
disappointed as well. I realized that I really wanted to give him a  
child. I wanted to learn how to be a good wife and mother. And,  
naturally, I began to listen to that ticking biological clock inside  
of me telling me to hurry up. So when we moved here I started seeing  
an OB-GYN and we got a fertility specialist. We started trying to  
conceive again, and we looked into artificial insemination because the  
chances of us conceiving naturally werenâ€™t very high.â€

â€œWow, so youâ€™re going to try invetro?â€ Donna is completely  
shocked. She canâ€™t imagine what the couple has had to go through these  
last eight months.

Finally CJâ€™s solemn face relaxes into a wide smile. â€œ We donâ€™t  
have to. Iâ€™m pregnant!â€

â€œOh thatâ€™s wonderful! Congratulations! But I thought you were  
having a hard time?â€ Donnaâ€™s just trying to take in all this new  
information.

â€œWe were. But just before the wedding the fertility doctor told  
us weâ€™d make a good candidate for invetro, that there was a good  
chance that by Christmas weâ€™d be expecting. So once all the pressure  
was off and we could just relax when we had sex and not worry about  
trying to conceive, it just happened on its own. We figure it happened  
on our honeymoon because Iâ€™m about four weeks in. Iâ€™m going to my  
gynecologist on Wednesday to have blood work and tests done to confirm  
everything is okay. Iâ€™m worried that the embryo formed in my fallopian  
tubes again. So weâ€™re not really telling anyone yet.â€

â€œI just canâ€™t believe this. Youâ€™ve had quite a roller-coaster  
ride the last eight months. Donna shakes her head back and forth,  
bringing her glass to her lips.

CJ nods and collects herself again. â€œYes, I have. But back to  
your problem. You donâ€™t know how to tell Josh. Has he ever shown an  
interest in children?â€

â€œWell, heâ€™s good with kids. He played with my nieces and nephews  
when we visited my parents a couple times. And we have talkedâ€¦kinda  
abstractlyâ€¦about a future family together. Heâ€™s told me how he used to  
be so afraid of commitment and getting too close to a woman for fear  
of being hurt or losing her. But heâ€™s getting so much better with me.  
And things are getting a lot more comfortable between us now. He  
sometimes talks about getting married.â€

â€œThere you go,â€ CJ offers comfortingly with a warm smile. â€œ  
Somewhere under that ridiculously goofy exterior of his lies a heart  
of gold.â€

Donna rolls her eyes, but cracks a faint smile. â€œYeah, he  
really is a good man.â€

CJ quirks her lips and looks seriously into her friendâ€™s eyes.  
â€œAnd he loves you so much, Donna. He has probably for ten years. I  
have no doubt that heâ€™ll want to do the right thing and support you  
and the baby. I mean, if thatâ€™s what you want to do. If you want to  
have the baby.â€

Donna stares back at her hostess seriously. â€œI donâ€™t think I  
could have an abortion. I just know that this complicates thing  
between Josh and I. When we got together there was some hype in the  
press for about a week. But in the end we simply said that weâ€™re  
adults who havenâ€™t done anything wrong or even unethical because we  
werenâ€™t in a relationship when I was working as his assistant. But  
whatâ€™s gonna happen when everyone finds out that weâ€™re having a baby?  
I can only imagine what the Wall Street Journal is going to say.â€

CJ rolls her eyes but canâ€™t contain a smile.â€œ I understand how  
you feel. I was press secretary for six years. I can fathom the sheer  
ruthlessness of the White House Press Corp. But youâ€™ll see that there  
might be one or twoâ€¦sympathetic correspondents who are more concerned  
with the truth than with writing a selling story.â€

â€œUnfortunately there are no more Danny Concannonâ€™s in the press  
room,â€ Donna chuckles lightly.

â€œRegardless, you know that it doesnâ€™t matter what the public  
thinks. You and Josh will figure out whatâ€™s best for you.â€™ CJ nods  
emphatically.

â€œYou really have changed,â€ Donna chides good-naturedly.

â€œSo, you gonna be okay?â€ CJ inquires cautiously.

Donna frowns lightly.â€œ Yeah. Weâ€™ll figure the whole thing out  
together. I know Josh loves me and hopefully heâ€™ll be okay once the  
initial shock wears off. And hey, our babies will be born around the  
same time so maybe we can compare parenting strategies. Itâ€™ll be nice  
to have a friend whoâ€™s going through the same thing.â€

CJ smiles largely. â€œWhen weâ€™re going through morning sickness and  
weight gain weâ€™ll have someone who can sympathize. And maybe when the  
babies are older theyâ€™ll become friends.â€

â€œWhat if oneâ€™s a girl and oneâ€™s a boy and they grow up and get  
married to each other?â€ Donna gushes with a giggle.

CJ rolls her eyes good-naturedly. â€œOh, come on, Donna. Thatâ€™s  
never going to happen.â€

â€œHi, honey, Iâ€™m home!â€ Danny calls goofily as he walks into the  
foyer.

â€œIn the den,â€ comes CJâ€™s response. â€œHow was your game?â€ She  
enquires when Danny enters the room and comes over to the couch to  
plant an open-mouthed kiss to her lips.

â€œYouâ€™re such newly weds. I love it,â€ Donna laughs, shaking her  
head and leaning back into the couch. She feels like a huge weight  
has been lifted from her shoulders. CJ assured her that she and Josh  
would be fine. Donna was going to tell Josh that she wanted him to be  
as involved with the baby as he wanted to be. But deep inside she can  
predict that Josh (probably after an initial aneurism) will want to  
get married and raise the baby together.

Danny just grins insanely. It seems like the first time in his  
relationship with CJ that theyâ€™ve got everything figured out and  
events are going in the direction theyâ€™d like. â€œ It was good. Did you  
ladies have a nice chat?â€

â€œI told Donna about the baby,â€ CJ admits kind of bashfully.

Dannyâ€™s eyes widen in surprise. â€œ Ah-kay. But I thought we  
werenâ€™t telling anyone?â€

CJ shrugs. â€œWell, we arenâ€™t. But I couldnâ€™t really resist,â€

â€œBecause I told her I was pregnant,â€ Donna reveals.

Once again, Dannyâ€™s eyes dilate. â€œAre you starting a club?â€ Danny  
teases in jest. â€œ Nah, thatâ€™s great, Donna. Congratulations.â€

â€œThanks. Well, I think Iâ€™m going to head to bed. Itâ€™s been a long  
day and going through all these changes to grow this baby is  
exhausting work.â€ Donna lifts herself off the couch.

CJ stands up and Danny droops an arm across her back. â€œThereâ€™s  
clean linen on the guest bed and towels in the bathroom. Do you need  
anything else before we turn in?â€

â€œNo, thanks. And I really appreciate you letting me stay here.  
Iâ€™m glad we had a chance to catch up. And congratulations again on  
the baby. Youâ€™ve obviously worked hard and you deserve it immensely.â€  
Donna draws CJ into a hug, so glad her job had provided an  
opportunity to talk with a close friend.

â€œDo you think Donnaâ€™s gonna be okay?â€ Danny inquires, rubbing  
circular patterns across CJâ€™s bare back as she curls into his chest.

â€œYeah, I think she will. Josh can be denser than a ten pound  
sack of stupid, but he loves Donna and heâ€™s honourable. Maybe this  
will force the two of them to figure out their future. Just like we  
had to figure out what we wanted after the miscarriage.â€ CJ sighs and  
snuggles closer to her new husband. Talking about it has become easier  
with time, but itâ€™s still very painful. The last few days knowing  
theyâ€™re expecting have been the happiest of their time together, and  
it helps to ease the difficulty of dealing with the previous pregnancy.

Danny turns up CJâ€™s chin to look at him. â€œDarling, I know we said  
we werenâ€™t gonna get excited about the baby until we found out for  
sure that everything was all right. But I canâ€™t help but feel elated.  
It was so hard these last months coming to terms with the miscarriage  
and then seeing if we could have another one. I have a really good  
feeling about this. You know that I love you unconditionally and we  
would still be happily married without kids. But seeing you pregnant,  
carrying my child for the next eight months, makes me fall deeper in  
love with you. You continually amaze me and I know youâ€™re gonna be an  
incredible mother. I canâ€™t wait to start this new stage in our lives  
together. I know the pregnancy wonâ€™t be a picnic for you, but Iâ€™m here  
for you for everything you need: Holding your hair while you vomit,  
rubbing your swollen ankles, running out in the middle of the night to  
buy cookie dough ice-creamâ€¦whatever.â€

CJâ€™s face contorts into a grimace. â€œEwww! I didnâ€™t realize  
pregnancy would involve all that. Thatâ€™s it, Iâ€™m out. You can do this  
all on your own.â€ Chuckling aloud, CJ covers Dannyâ€™s lips with her  
own. â€œ You better damn well take care of me after you did this!â€ She  
jests, running a hand along Dannyâ€™s jaw-line. â€œSeriously? Thank you,  
darling. Nothing will make me happier than being able to give us a  
child, but I canâ€™t do this alone. Iâ€™m very grateful to have you. I  
have every confidence that youâ€™ll make a doting father.â€

â€œI hope so. I just want to shout this to the world. I  
impregnated my wife. My ego is the size of Montana right now.â€ He  
laughs out loud and slides a hand under the waist band of CJâ€™s panties.

â€œAnd God willing in a few days youâ€™ll be able to brag til your  
egoâ€™s the size of Texas,â€ CJ concedes. â€œ But right now we have to pray  
and wait patiently.â€

â€œAnd I know the perfect way to pass all that time.â€ Danny arches  
a brow suggestively and begins to slowly remove CJâ€™s tank top.


End file.
